Theresa Horn Author Archive

Hi! My name is Theresa Horn and I am presently employed by the St. Joseph County Public Library in South Bend, Indiana, where I have worked for fourteen years. I am currently the Manager of the Children’s Services Department where I spend a lot of time e-mailing and working with Google Docs and not enough time doing the hokey pokey and reading picture books. I am also the second vice chair of CYPD (Children’s and Young People's Division of the Indiana Library Federation) where I manage the CYPD Facebook Page and help plan our annual conference. I LOVE audiobooks and am currently listening to The Diviners by Libba Bray.

At fifteen, Emily Ellis didn’t see working in a library as a career but rather a better option than flipping burgers. As time went on, however, her opinions on librarianship changed, and she pursued her MLS, eventually landing a job as a high school media center assistant, where she discovered her passion for working with teens. Ellis became the “teen whisperer,” making connections with the students who stopped by her office when visiting the media center. Her talents didn’t go unnoticed, and Library Journal named her Mover & Shaker in 2012 for her work with teens.

The Indiana Center of the Book recently announced Hooray for Hat! by Brian Won as the winner of the 2016 Indiana Early Literacy Firefly Award. The Indiana State Library wanted to show its commitment to early literacy and felt it was vital to have an award that celebrates reading for children ages 0–5. It modeled the Firefly Award after New Hampshire’s Ladybug Award in 2015 and gave the first award to Don’t Push the Button by Bill Cotter.

While public libraries are constantly transforming themselves to meet the changing informational and entertainment needs of the community, many people still have an old fashioned-view idea of what libraries have to offer. Why is this? Libraries are so much more than books. Today’s libraries have cutting-edge technology, dynamic programming, and knowledgeable staff, yet so many […]

If you have ever planned a program for kids or teens, then you have probably had at least one program that was a total bust. You spent weeks flipping through magazines, scouring the Internet looking for ideas, collaborating with colleagues, Pinning, planning, prepping, and organizing what you think is a fabulous program idea, only to have a couple of kids (or even no kids) show up. There are plenty of reasons for low program attendance, but many librarians immediately blame themselves when a program is not successful. If I only spent more time on it! Had it on a different day! Had snacks! Used more glitter! Often the reaction is to ramp things up even more, hoping that if you worker harder, the next program will bring in the patrons. But what if the opposite were true? What if you could do less and still have a successful program? Amy Koester, the “Show Me Librarian” and Youth & Family Program Coordinator at the Skokie (IL) Public Library, explains how that just might be possible with something she calls “unprogramming.”

Troy Cummings is the author of The Eency Weency Spider Freaks Out, More Bears!, and the Notebook of Doom series. He recently spoke at the Children and Young People’s Division (CYPD) of the Indiana Library Federation Conference () and proved capable of making a bunch of librarians laugh just like he does his younger fans. Public Libraries caught up with the author after the conference to learn more about his books, career, and what it takes to host a successful author visit.

The teenage years are not easy for anyone, but for many LGBT teens, the struggle to understand themselves and find acceptance from their peers and community can be even more difficult. The public library can be a wonderful resource for LGBT teens looking for answers or for those just needing a safe, welcoming space to gather with friends. If you want to begin to make a connection with your LGBT teen patrons, there are a few easy steps you can take to get started improving service to this often underserved community.

The St. Joseph County Public Library (SJCPL) in South Bend, Indiana, recently said farewell to their highly regarded director of thirty­seven years, Donald Napoli, who retired on June 30th. Napoli was only the fifth director in the library’s 126­ year history and during his tenure saw many changes. The biggest trend when he started in 1977 was the move to “give them what they want,” which emphasized popular materials over well­rounded collections. This patron­driven idea was pioneered by Dr. Ernest R. DeProspo at Rutgers University and whole­heartedly embraced by Napoli, who believed that public libraries should reflect the communities they serve.